Blaze Of Glory
by CStGeorge
Summary: The end of the Great War is nigh. For countless years, ponies have battled each other, gradually whittling down Equestria's population. Very few remain, and among them is only one of the original Bearers of Harmony. But in the last battle, Rainbow Dash will experience what it means to truly go down in history, and the price you must pay.


_**Blaze Of Glory**_

By CStGeorge

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The pegasus rolled in midair, a spell flying by singeing her primaries. She hissed in a sharp breath.

_Ignore it._

The battlefield below her was dark and bloody, the magical Arkana Order crushing the desperately fighting forces of the pegasi and the earth ponies. Even united, they could not stand against the unbridled combat magic of the merciless unicorns, and more fell every minute. Powerful bolts of condensed magic flew across the battlefield, matched in the opposite direction by a small force of archers with half-empty quivers. The woefully one-sided battle could only end one way. The unicorns would establish dominion in the power vacuum left by the death of the final Princess, Twilight Sparkle, at the hands of a mysterious assassin. Their leader, Trixie Lulamoon, would rule the shattered Equestria not with the gentle touch of a ruler, but with the iron hoof of a tyrant. Thousands of years of prosperity and friendship had already left like a fleeting morning dream.

Deep in thought, the blue pegasus went into autopilot, dodging attacks while planning, until there was a shrill scream from the lines of the pegasi, higher than any stallion's voice, and she witnessed a speck of orange and purple falling, falling until it hit the ground and didn't rise. Scootaloo.

She was barely even a mare. The blue pegasus had found her, many years ago, shivering and unconscious, in the Cutie Mark Crusader's clubhouse when she was still just a filly. Lifting her up, the larger pony had carried her through the blizzard, her wings becoming numb, until, her breathing labored, she arrived at her house. Ever since that day, the filly had become like a sister to her, who watched with pride as she grew into a fine young mare.

Something in her snapped at that. She shook in midair, her eyes becoming hard and unforgiving, and her jaw set. Flapping her wings to rise higher, above the range of the Arkana spells, she scanned their lines, smiling grimly as soon as she saw a certain powder blue unicorn.

Breathing deeply, she rose ever higher, and from her back, she drew a long, rune-covered sword, which glowed with a brilliant white light. Finally, as the air grew thin and her vision began to blur, she stopped, breathed again, and sharply plunged downwards, a cone of intangible power forming as she drove herself ever faster. She felt the resistance growing, but continued, paying no mind to the crackle of lightning drawn from the stormclouds around her. Still greater became the resistance, until finally, with a resounding _crack_, a flash of brilliant spectral light burst from her, the tremendous noise echoing through the empty sky. For a split second, all fighting ceased. Spells stopped flying. Weapons stopped flashing. Even the sound of ponies falling in battle faltered, and all was still for an eternal moment.

Holding the blade out in front of her, her eyes narrowed as she approached the ground, wings pumping ever faster as each speck of detail became defined. Just feet from the ground, she pulled up sharply, turning exactly ninety degrees and blasting through the ranks of the Arkana.

Suddenly, she stopped.

In front of her was a large canvas pavilion. Standing in front of it was the light blue unicorn, eyes narrowed, holding an ornate staff in her magic. The pegasus flipped the sword from her hoof to her mouth with the practiced movement of a warrior and narrowed her eyes in turn.

Around them there was a sudden silence, as the Arkana soldiers absorbed the sudden turn of events. As the moment passed and they rushed towards the pegasus, a powder blue hoof was held out and they stepped back in surprise. The unicorn shook her head, her silvery mane blowing in the warm breeze. With a flick of the staff, she effortlessly tossed a spell at the pegasus, who easily batted it aside with the enchanted blade. As though it were a sort of ritual, they took their opposite places at the ends of the clearing just in front of the canvas canopy. The two combatant's eyes met.

The pegasus shot into the air, arcing downwards in a powerful strike with the sword. Dodging the strike, the unicorn swung the staff like a mace, just clipping a cyan ear. A few drops of blood spilled from it. As she landed, the pegasus skidded a few feet, spinning lightly like a dancer to deflect the ball of flame surging towards her. Swinging the weapon in her mouth, she sent the fire back at the unicorn, who matched it with another, effectively canceling it out before following it with a third, which the pegasus ducked under. She dashed forward, slicing at the unicorn, who just barely managed to throw up a magical barrier in time to block the strike. The enchanted sword shattered it, however, after a second strike, but that was more than enough time for the unicorn to quickly jump back.

The pegasus growled, the guttural noise containing worlds of rage, and quickly flashed forward, opting out of a strike with the blade with a swift double-hoofed kick. It made contact with the unicorn's hind legs as she made to jump into the air, knocking them out from under her and tumbling her to the ground. Her horn flashed and she vanished, the runed sword crashing into the ground, sticking into the soil. She reappeared just to the right of the pegasus and gathered a blast of compressed air with her horn, releasing it and sending the other pony crashing into the ground. Her eyes gleamed with malicious glee as a pink aura enveloped the weapon embedded in the earth, drawing it out and sending it forward, flashing towards the pegasus, who only just managed to rise from the ground and jump backwards, the very tip of the blade slicing a tiny cut across her muzzle.

The unicorn retracted the blade, walking slowly forward towards the winded, gasping pegasus. Suddenly, she stopped, confused.

A smile graced the pegasus' face.

With a flurry of feathers, she took off, soaring into the sky. Suddenly, however, she simply stopped. She was wrapped in light and was being slowly dragged to the ground. Sweat beaded on her brow as she began to flap her wings harder. The same was evident on the unicorn's brow, the stress of the magic beginning to take its toll. Her eyes opened wide in incredulous surprise. The pegasus was winning the invisible tug-of-war, the distance between them expanding, ever so slowly. The unicorn hissed in frustration and sliced at her. Just before the sword could make contact, the tenuous hold of the telekinesis finally snapped and she blasted away, all of her restrained speed set free. As she ascended, she began to spin, slowly at first, then faster and faster.

The lightning in the storm above began to gradually funnel into the vortex trailing behind her. It writhed in its prison like a caged demon, fighting the pull with all it could give. It wasn't enough. As the cone began to form, the lightning began to move upwards, gradually crawling up her body until it settled upon her wings, streams of blinding light trailing behind them. As the cone began to converge, she quickly flipped one-hundred and eighty degrees in the air, without losing speed. As she flashed downwards, the cone further narrowed until it was almost a needle. Finally, it cracked, and the prismatic light once again emanated from it, lighting her in seven colors as she flew straight down, the lightning crackling in trails behind her. Two hundred feet. One hundred. Fifty.

She smashed into the unicorn, a colossal explosion of lightning erupting at the point of unicorn was instantly vaporized, her ashes dispersing into open air, as were the soldiers standing closest to them. Those anywhere near the massive blast simply fell over, their hearts no longer pumping as overwhelming electricity surged through them.

The final guards remaining charged before the smoke had dissipated, intending to capture the pegasus, knowing of their natural resistance to lightning.

The smoke cleared.

In front of them was the crumpled body of the once-proud pegasus, her blue feathers cracked and stained with her blood.

Tentatively, one unicorn stepped forward and dropped her spear, removing her helmet and revealing a ruffled mane of mint-green and eyes of golden amber. A single tear fell from her cheek.

"Rest in peace...Rainbow Dash."


End file.
